


Taking Care

by Keinine



Category: aichuu, アイ チュウ | Ai Chuu (Video Game)
Genre: M/M, Polyamory
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-26
Updated: 2018-09-26
Packaged: 2019-07-17 16:39:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,834
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16099604
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Keinine/pseuds/Keinine
Summary: Some days are just harder than others.Those days, Atsushi needs a bit of help, even if he doesn't ask for it.





	Taking Care

The sky was dark when Atsushi woke, rain pattering against the window as a storm raged on outside. The room was lit for a moment, a streak of lightning splitting the sky, followed shortly by the rumble of thunder.  _ It’s going to be that kind of day _ , he thought. One that will sap all his energy from him, until he wants to do nothing more than lay in bed and simply sleep.

However, he had plans today, a rare overlapping of days off with Go and Junta, and his son had plans to stay over his friend’s house all weekend, so sleeping in all day wasn’t an option.

Getting ready to leave was a painfully slow process; none of his clothes seemed to agree with him today, deciding to wear something casual, an uncharacteristic act for him. At least, now it is, seeing he would do nothing but wear jeans and t-shirts with old, worn down hoodies when he was younger. Now, he keeps his hair brushed back neatly, formal pants with button-up shirts and vests worn at all times… unless he doesn’t have the energy to care about his appearance, and he silently hopes Junta and Go aren’t wearing anything fancy.

He doesn’t bother eating anything, instead just drinking some cold tea he’d left out the night before, an awful taste lingering in his mouth as he stepped out.

Atsushi stands in his doorway for a few moments, looking aimlessly at the street, the rain pouring down, listening to the distant thunder. He feels sick. It’s not exactly a nauseous sick, but more so a sickness that’s deep in his body, causing a fatigue he can’t shake. Putting up his hood, he half-jogs to his car, not really wanting to get too wet, but also not caring that much.

The drive to the cafe is silent, Atsushi not bothering to put the radio on… he’d listened to the Tenjyou Tenge CD in his player hundreds of times now, and nothing on the radio sounded good to him, just a bunch of static noise passed off as music. Sometimes silence was best, anyway.

He finds himself waiting in the parking lot for a while, looking for the familiar sight of Junta’s car. He and Go were coming here together, Go having spent the night at Junta’s place last night after work. It’s not like he left particularly early… in fact, he left late. If anything, he should be the last to arrive.

Phone rings out a tone, Atsushi opening it to see a text from Go to the group chat the three of them are in.

Hayami Go   
[Junta got called into work.]

Arayashiki Junta   
[Sorry, Atsushi. There was an incident involving Todoroki. Some no-good tabloid is trying write a piece on him. We’ll have to reschedule.]

Hayami Go   
[I would meet up with you myself, but there’s some work I should finish up since I’m here as well.]

Well, that’s just great.

Arayashiki Junta   
[You weren’t already at the cafe, were you? You’re usually earlier than us.]

Me   
[I just arrived. However, it’s fine. I was feeling unwell anyway.]

Why would he say that. Now they’re going to pester him-

Hayami Go   
[Unwell? Atsushi! You shouldn’t be in the rain if you’re sick!]

Arayashiki Junta   
[Go is right. Head home and get some rest. If you need anything, let us know.]

He needs his bed. That’s all. 

The drive back is as much of a silent blur as the drive to the cafe. Atsushi’s body is on autopilot, changing out of his clothes, tossing them on the floor, changing back into sweatpants and a loose-fitting t-shirt, what he’d slept in the night before, and he lays down on his bed, not bothering to push the covers aside. He’ll just lay on top of them.

Taking hold of his pillow, he pulls it close to his chest, burying his face in it as he curls in on himself a little. There’s so much he has to do around the house today. Chores he told himself he’d do once he got back from his outing with Junta and Go; dishes piled up in the sink, laundry needed to be done, the floors needed to be swept, shelves dusted, plants watered… just thinking about them exhausted Atsushi.

His son, someone that needs Atsushi’s help and guidance, managed to clean his room and the bathroom before he’d left yesterday evening, and Atsushi can’t even bring himself to be a decent role model and do his own chores.

It’s only 16:00.  _ A nap will help _ , he thinks. Just a short nap, 20 minutes at most. Just something to get his energy back. And then he’ll get up, start the dishes, make some tea, and get to cleaning.

-

Atsushi doesn’t remember grabbing a blanket before sleeping, yet he wakes with one on him. The curtains on his window have been closed, and the clothes on his floor were picked up. The basket of dirty laundry in his room is missing. He reaches blindly for his phone, squinting against the sudden bright light from his phone’s lock screen. 21:00… so much for a 20 minute nap. Sleeping didn’t seem to help regardless, though.

Pushing himself up from his bed, he makes his way to his door, taking hold of the handle, hesitating to open it. There are muffled noises coming from the other side, the sound of running water, and laughter.

Opening it slowly, he peeks his head out, looking down the hall towards the living room. Making his way down the hall, he leans against the wall, arms crossed, as he looks over the living room. Go is seated on his couch, folding clean laundry, separating everything into neat piles divided by shirts, pants, socks… a bit more than Atsushi would have bothered doing, but it makes things easier.

Leaning forward into the room, he sees the kitchen space, where Junta is finishing up the dishes. The two are caught up in conversation, not noticing Atsushi is standing there until Go looks up to from putting another shirt on the pile.

“Atsushi, good morning~! We didn’t wake you, did we?”

Junta finishes drying a cup, placing it in the cabinet. “Are you hungry? I can cook something for you, if you want.”

“That would be appreciated.”

Junta nods to him, turning back to the fridge. Atsushi walks over to the couch, sitting down next to Go, leaning back against the cushions with a sigh. A hand comes up to his face, rubbing one of his eyes.

“Have you been getting enough sleep, Atsushi? You look completely worn down!” Go pushes the now empty basket aside, turning to face Atsushi. He reaches out, taking either side of his face in his hands, running his thumbs along his cheeks. “Looking at you, you’ve lost weight again, haven’t you? This just won’t do. You’re too thin!”

Atsushi just leans into his touch, letting him ramble on and fuss, like always. His stomach growls when he smells what Junta is cooking, and that just makes Go fuss more, asking if Atsushi has even eaten today. They all know he hasn’t, but the question is asked anyway.

Junta brings a plate over to Atsushi, leaving him to eat as they go around finishing up the chores that he couldn’t bring himself to do. Why is it that they always wind up pampering him? Even when he actively tries to do things for them, it’s always turned around onto him. They probably think he’s pathetic, right?

Even when he stands to take his plate back to the kitchen, Junta tries to take it from him. Atsushi can only laugh, shaking his head. “It’s fine. I’m not some feeble elderly. I can wash a plate.” He says, even though Junta just had to wash an entire sink full of cups, dishes, and silverware. They hover while he cleans, Junta leaning on the counter, Go standing behind him, reaching up to playfully rub his shoulders. Atsushi’s back was to them, but he knows they were looking at him the entire time. He doesn’t bother drying it, instead leaving it on the rack beside the sink to dry. He dries his hand before turning back to face the two, leaning back against the counter, hands braced against it.

“You two didn’t have to come over, you know. I apologize if I worried you… do you want tea? Now that the dishes are clean,” he nods his head to Junta in thanks, “I can offer you some.”

Go shakes his head, walking around the island separating the kitchen from the living room, taking hold of Atsushi’s wrist. “Junta and I helped ourselves earlier, so we’re fine~. You, on the other hand, look like you need some T・L・C~!”

The sing-song voice he uses while speaking tells Atsushi he doesn’t have a say in the matter, and when he looks to Junta for assistance, the other simply shrugs. Once Go makes up his mind, there’s nothing anyone can do to go against him.

So, Atsushi is dragged back to his room, blankets pulled back properly as he’s laid down in the center, Go and Junta resting on either side of him. It was a bit of a tight fit, the bed not really made for more than one person, let alone three at once. Go curls around him, his face being pressed against the younger’s chest, arms wrapped around him and threading through Atsushi’s hair gently. Junta’s chest presses against his back, arms draped over both him and Go lazily.

He nestles himself closer to Go’s chest, eyes closing with a sigh. He hears Junta humming over the sound of rain outside, Go’s fingers beginning to gently comb through his hair. Junta’s voice breaks the calm atmosphere momentarily, asking, “do you mind if we stay the night? I’ll make breakfast in the morning.”

Go hums. “I’ll finish up doing your laundry, too, since I started it. It would be rude if I didn’t.”

Atsushi shakes his head, already half asleep. “Doesn’t matter to me. Then again, I’m comfortable now, so if you get up I’ll be upset.”

That causes the other two to laugh, Go pressing a kiss to Atsushi’s head. “We won’t go anywhere.”

Junta presses a kiss to Atsushi’s cheek. “Get some rest. Go and I will be here when you wake up.”

Despite his lingering exhaustion all day, he finds himself fighting sleep. Just for a while longer, he wants to feel the press of warm bodies against his. A lingering anxiety, deep within, makes him feel as though this will be his last. Yet he suppresses it once more, knowing with certainty that, should he ask, these two will come running to his side to be like this with him. There is a safety here, one that Atsushi is grateful for. 

Atsushi is happy that Junta and Go were the ones that were stubborn enough to chase after him time and time again.

**Author's Note:**

> Just a quick drabble I wanted to do. Not beta read.
> 
> I don't exactly remember how they refer to one another, so I just assumed they're on a first name basis. If they refer to one another otherwise, I'll edit the piece to be correct.
> 
> If you want to contact me, I can be found on [Twitter](twitter.com/https://twitter.com/KElNlNE).


End file.
